Missing an Open Goal: Why USA Lost to Ghana

Written by: Gabe

Months ago, around the time the World Cup lottery was drawn, US Soccer publicly set one clear goal: Get out of the group stage. Surviving the group stage was a fair measure for the players, the program and the coach, and after all, the USA was improving incrementally over 2006 and their group seemed winnable. But by defining such a modest goal so clearly, the Americans unknowingly constructed their downfall.

A funny thing happens when the parameters for success are so clear: focus can become so intense that the bigger potential slips away. The World Cup is huge, but Group C was a saga unto itself. After a dangerous close call with the English, USA fought through another self-imposed struggle to secure a draw against Slovenia. Surely the Americans were taxed, but their goal had yet to be met. The Algeria game was a must-win for the United States to survive the group, and the build-up for the team must have been tremendous. One more match. Then the match came, and it was a struggle so epic, with a climax and outcome so dramatic, it felt like a fairy tale. After years of physical and emotional exertion, the goal was achieved. USA wins, and they lived happily ever after.

While it must have felt like a triumph to parallel a legendary final, in the broader picture, it was not. The tournament was just beginning, and with only days to recuperate, the Americans were spent. They said they were ready, but we all remembered that anything beyond the group stage was a bonus—and we could read between the lines. Beating Ghana (or anyone at this level) was just too much.

The USA fell out of the Cup because of a goal. Not the one from Asamoah Gyan, but the one in the Americans’ heads.

Their obsession with a less-than-lofty goal ultimately led to a dead end, even with a gift of a round of 16 bracket. Would they have played differently with far-sighted and slightly vaguer hopes? I think so. With longer-term goals, people perform to maintain greatness, not simply achieve it. There are few ups and downs; indeed it’s a completely different mindset.

To be fair, the American objective in the abstract was enough to satisfy. It was a step up from 2006, and required hard work to achieve. In this way, the tournament was a success. In fact, I can’t remember anyone criticizing Landon Donovan for setting the team’s sights too low. We universally nodded in agreement; the goal had merit.

Yet today, in spite of meeting that very goal (exceeding—USA topped the group), the word ‘disappointment’ echoes on broadcast and social media. Disappointment? USA leveled its aim and hit the target we all accepted. Two ties, a win, and a loss aren’t spectacular, but it’s more than we expected in a group that was harder than we supposed. The team won on foreign soil (twice, ahem), scored many times in the run of play, outmatched a world power, and in the most grim moments showed surprising belief in itself. The only disappointment I feel is that everyone (players, coaches, media, fans, and me) once again lowballed the Americans’ potential.